King Charles Becomes Patron of His Former Scottish Secondary School
The Netflix series 'The Crown' depicted the monarch's time at the institution as "absolute hell."
King Charles is officially the patron of his former secondary school.
On the anniversary of his coronation, the U.K. monarch accepted a patronage at the Scottish institution Gordonstoun, where King Charles attended secondary school, the BBC reports.
King Charles attended the institution from 1962 to 1967, and reportedly described his time at school as "absolute hell."
The monarch's time at the school was depicted in the hit Netflix series The Crown. In the second season, a young King Charles is seen as being instantly miserable upon his arrival—he's bullied by his former classmates, struggles to learn and adapt to the overall lifestyle of the all-boys institution and is not as physically fit as his peers.
King Charles is even rumored to have nicknamed the school “Colditz in kilts."
Britain's King Charles III waves as he leaves, with Britain's Queen Camilla, the London Clinic, in London, on January 29, 2024.
Still, the monarch has only ever spoken fondly of his time at the secondary school when discussing it in public.
“I am always astonished by the amount of rot talked about Gordonstoun and the careless use of ancient clichés used to describe it,” King Charles said in 1975 during a speech he gave at House of Lords.
“It was only tough in the sense that it demanded more of you as an individual than most other schools did—mentally or physically," he continued at the time. "I am lucky in that I believe it taught me a great deal about myself and my own abilities and disabilities. It taught me to accept challenges and take the initiative. Why else do you think I am brave enough to stand up before your Lordships now?”
In a previous interview with People, historian Robert Lacey said the late Prince Philip has been "depicted as cruel for sending (Charles) to the school."
Prince Charles arrives at Gordonstoun School in Scotland for his first term, and is shown around by Captain Iain Tennant, chairman of the board of governors.
“When Philip was there, he found the hardships, the challenges of the climate and countryside uplifting," Lacey told the publication at the time. "By the time Charles was there, the school has become a much more conventional private school. It’s a poignant, powerful story.”
In a statement posted to the Gordonstoun’s website, the school leadership said the institution is “immensely proud to be the first senior school to educate a King, and prouder still to note how the years King Charles spent here nurtured his love of, and commitment to, service, to the outdoors and to the arts.”
